OF INTEREST TO PILOTS

1. Aviation groups should work with DOT secretary designate
   Incoming AOPA President Craig Fuller congratulated Secretary of Transportation Designate Rep. Ray LaHood on Dec. 19 after his official nomination from President-elect Barak Obama. Fuller told LaHood, “Your background in Congress as a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and its aviation subcommittee gives you a special insight into the aviation industry and many of the issues we face. Your understanding of the importance of the economic impact of aviation is especially important as you take on this leadership role.”
   
   
2. Goodbye to one tough year
   Looking back over 2008 you might think it’s mostly bad news. But there are bits of good news among the torrent of terrible. While it was a tough year for the very light jet market, avionics and some piston-single manufacturers weathered the storm. Read AOPA Pilot Editor-in-Chief Thomas B. Haines' review of the general aviation industry.
   
   
3. Triumphs and tragedies: A look back at 2008
   The ups and downs of 2008 proved a challenge to general aviation, with some incidents dividing pilots and others uniting them. The year saw the first U.S. pilot to be jailed for a fatal accident; general aviation saved the life of another; and pilots prevented a TV crew from flying GA aircraft into a major airport for a so-called story. See the Top 10 stories, ranked by readership, that captivated pilots in 2008.
   
   
4. HondaJet headquarters complete
   Honda Aircraft says it is still on track to deliver its innovative HondaJets to customers by the end of 2010. To support that effort, the Greensboro, N.C., company has completed its research and development facility and corporate headquarters. Work on the twinjet’s production facility is set to begin early next year. Ultimately, the Honda campus will include 400,000 square feet of space.
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5. Incapacitation?
   It's not something that happens often in general aviation. On average, about half a dozen pilot incapacitation accidents happen every year in GA. The following comes from the soon-to-be-released 2008 Joseph T. Nall Report that will examine GA's 2007 accident picture: "Of the six incapacitation accidents that occurred in 2007, one was the result of a heart attack, and one a probable stroke. Both were fatal. Two others, one fatal, were attributed to spatial disorientation. The remaining two were an apparent murder-suicide that killed two, and a loss of consciousness on short final that the pilot speculated might have been caused by dehydration. He suffered only minor injuries after a hard landing." Read more >>
   
   
6. Question: I have my instrument rating, but I am not instrument current. Can I still operate under IFR as long as the weather remains VMC along my entire route of flight?
   Answer: FAR 61.57(c) states that you cannot act as pilot in command under instrument flight rules (IFR) unless you meet the recent experience requirements. Even if you know you will not encounter instrument meteorological conditions (IMC), this regulation still prohibits you from operating under IFR.
   
   
7. AOPA Calendar of Events (Arizona and within reasonably flying distance)
   Safety Seminars Mesa and Tucson
   
   
8. 
   The Lighter Side of Flight
   
   Overheard on Baltimore approach frequency:
   
   Approach:
   "Cessna 1234B, what code are you squawking?"
   
   Cessna:
   "We're squawking 1200. Is everything O.K.?"
   
   Approach:
   "Cessna 34B, you're inside Class B air space, you don't have a
   clearance to enter Class B, and you're squawking the wrong code. Other
   than that, everything is just fine."